An Alabama woman accused of killing a mother by pushing her off a cliff faces the death penalty.
Loretta Kay Carr, 44, and her daughter Jessie Kelly, 22, were both charged with murder in June 2023, nearly two years after 38-year-old Mary Elizabeth Isbell went missing.
Authorities searched far and wide for Isbell’s body but could find no trace of the missing mother from Hartselle, Alabama, until last year.
It turns out that Carr shared a photo of her at the murder scene in Little River Canyon National Preserve in January 2019.
Now the state of Alabama has informed Carr’s defense team that it will seek the death penalty.
Loretta Kay Carr, an Alabama woman accused of killing a mother by pushing her off a cliff, faces the death penalty
The 44-year-old and her daughter Jessie Kelly, 22, were both charged with murder in June 2023, almost two years after 38-year-old Mary Elizabeth Isbell went missing.
Authorities searched far and wide for Isbell’s body (pictured) but could find no trace of the missing mother from Hartselle, Alabama, until last year.
Court documents show that prosecutors in Alabama are seeking the death penalty for Carr.
Carr and her daughter were held for three days before Isbell’s remains were located.
Later, photos of her at the murder scene emerged and she wrote, “Day trip to Little River Canyon and Falls.
‘Was beautiful and only a short distance from the house.’
Carr is being held at the DeKalb County Jail in Fort Payne, Alabama.
She is accused of kidnapping and murder, but Carr insists there is no evidence.
Carr’s attorneys previously argued that the state does not have enough evidence to justify the incarceration or to send the case to a grand jury.
Her daughter was arrested in Pennsylvania and extradited to Alabama.
Carr is accused of kidnapping Isbell before pushing her off a cliff on October 18, 2021.
It is unclear how the women knew each other.
DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden previously said, “We would like to thank the Pennsylvania State Police Corry Barracks, Huntsville Search Dog Unit, State of Alabama Aviation Unit, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Fischer Rescue Squad and all of the volunteers who assisted during this investigation for all their hard work and dedication.
“Each individual played an important role in bringing Beth home and holding those responsible for this horrific crime accountable.
“We would like to ask that you please pray for Beth’s family and give them privacy as they navigate this difficult time.”
Isbell was last seen in the fall of 2021. She was officially reported missing in January 2022 and two women were arrested last June on charges of her kidnapping and murder. Isbell’s remains were found in a wildlife refuge in Alabama
It turned out that Carr posed at the murder scene in Little River Canyon National Preserve in January 2019
Carr, of Fort Payne, was charged with capital murder and faces life in prison or the death penalty if convicted
The timeline of Isbell’s disappearance remains confused.
In the months leading up to her disappearance, she was suspected of theft in DeKalb County.
The sheriff’s office said the theft involved an apartment where she lived with her boyfriend, James Allen Wright.
James Wright was arrested by the sheriff’s office in September 2021 and released to a drug rehabilitation center in Florida in November 2021.
The sheriff’s office said that while in jail, Isbell was essentially homeless, moving between friends’ homes and “living wherever she could in DeKalb County.”
Her mother, Debbie Wood, told a local news station that Isbell got caught up in a “bad” crowd.
“I think she got mixed up with the wrong people,” she said.
She described Isbell’s relationship with Wright as “new but troubled,” and said they were always getting into arguments.
Carr is accused of kidnapping Isbell and pushing her off a cliff on October 18, 2021.
However, according to another police report, she visited her mother’s home in Hartselle on November 22, 2021.
The next day, November 23, 2021, she was spotted across the street from her son’s school, also in Hartselle.
Isbell’s ex-husband, Steven Isbell, said she was missing on December 27, 2021.
“I hate to post this here on social media, but Facebook covers a wide area,” he wrote.
‘[Her son] hasn’t heard from his mother since September 6 on his birthday and he’s very worried about her because she always calls him at least during the holidays.
Isbell led a troubled life leading up to her disappearance. Her boyfriend was in jail and then in rehab, and she moved from one place to another
Carr’s attorneys argue there is no evidence she killed Isbell and claim there is no connection between the two women.
‘I’ve spoken to her family but no one has heard from her. That’s why we thought about filing a missing person report.’
Detectives from the Harselle Police Department searched the home where Isbell was staying on the day of Steve Isbell’s Facebook post, December 27, 2021.
Physical evidence was recovered from the home and entered into a national database, but no match was found at the time.
Family members officially reported her missing to the Hartselle Police Department and the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office in January 2022, and a missing poster was posted on their website on January 19, 2022.
The case remained quiet until June 20 last year, when DeKalb County investigators received information about Isbell’s disappearance and interviewed two people in connection with her murder.
Carr was arrested on June 25.
Officers discovered remains on June 28, and forensics confirmed they belonged to Isbell on June 30 – which would have been her 39th birthday.
Her teenage son posted a tribute to his mother, sharing a link to Carr’s arrest and writing: “I love you forever, like you forever, as long as I live you will be my mother.”